
need to know Podcasts
Need to Know is the weekly investment podcast exclusive for Coutts clients.
Each week we chat to senior members of Coutts Asset management team to find out what you need to know for the week ahead.
latest episode
31 OCT 2023
Sarah Muir, Alan Higgins and Howard Sparks turn their attention to US earnings season. This week we look at the general mood, why high expectations mean markets are punishing less-than-stellar numbers and the long term outlook for earnings.
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Previous Episodes
24 OCT 2023
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins look at whether market corrections are an opportunity, the nature of equity returns and why investors need to look beyond annualised performance. Plus has Alan changed his mind about index investing?
19 OCT 2023 - BONUS EPISODE
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins chat with behavioural psychologist, Ed Nottingham about the three things we can all do to help us be more rational investors.
18 OCT 2023
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins look at how markets normally respond to major geopolitical events and what’s different this time. Plus could a bearish consensus be a contrarian indicator for equity bulls and the pros and cons of ‘T Bill and Chill’.
11 OCT 2023
Ben Allen and Alan Higgins discuss why the US economy remains so resilient, the differences between owning a fund and owning gilts directly, and whether or not we’ll see a market sell-off.
3 oct 2023
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins discuss the latest data, why Gilts are CGT exempt and thoughts on Dumb Money, the new film chronicling Gamestop and the meme stock frenzy of 2021.
26 Sept 2023
Is Michael Burry using the 2008 playbook to dictate his most recent ‘big short’? Alan Higgins and Sarah Muir look at three aspects of the Global Financial Crisis and if there any parallels that can be drawn with today’s markets.
19 Sept 2023
Thoughts on inflation in the US vs Europe and the UK, what’s behind this year’s drop in share buybacks and lessons learnt from the dot.com bubble.
12 SEPT 2023
Alan Higgins and Sarah Muir look at this week’s data, including UK employment. Plus why is the price of oil rising and what can we learn from the big crash of 1987?
5 SEPT 2023
Thoughts on the latest US jobs report and whether the Fed can engineer a soft landing. As National Savings announces a one-year bond offering 6.2%, equities in a higher interest rate environment. And last but not least, how do Royal Albert Hall debentures perform as an investment.
22 AUG 2023
With Michael Burry’s latest big short of the US market hitting the headlines, we look at how shorting the market actually works. Plus ahead of this week’s BRICS conference, thoughts on China.
15 AUG 2023
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins discuss the outlook for UK inflation and why we need to start focussing on the month-on-month number. Plus the case for share buybacks, a luxury alternative to equities and top business tips from the late Mark McCormack.
8 AUG 2023
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins consider the Fitch downgrade of US sovereign debt and why they might have a point. The US market and why the mood is turning bullish. Plus Jane Birkin and the Hermes Birkin bag…is the iconic tote a better investment than stock in the company that makes it?
1 AUG 2023
Sarah Muir and Monique Wong discuss the latest US data and why you shouldn’t fight the Fed, the Bank of Japan’s yield curve control policy and why that matters for global markets. Plus thoughts on the UK housing market.
31 JULY 2023
Howard Sparks joins Sarah Muir for a US earnings Need to Know special. They look at some of the headline data, great expectations - the corporate winner and losers, and why Q2 earnings is proving to be all about mean reversion.
25 JULY 2023
Thoughts on a momentous week ahead for central banks and how economic expectations at the start of the year have played out. Plus the Magnificent 7 and why strong earnings are not always enough to please markets.
19 JULY 2023
Alan Higgins and Sarah Muir discuss positive data, what’s up with the Chinese economy and index investing.
11 JULY 2023
Alan Higgins and Sarah Muir look at the latest data, greedflation and conflicting theories as to what really leads to rising prices. Plus thoughts on the brawling billionaires…
30 JUNE 2023 BONUS
Investing in a higher interest environment: how high is too high, at what level do equities become unattractive and why the buzz around AI is currently trumping higher interest rates.
27 JUNE 2023
Events in Russia and the impact on markets, UK core inflation continues to rise and the bull and bear case for investing in equities.
20 JUNE 2023
The magnificent seven of stocks, why UK inflation is proving so difficult to tame and the Beyond blip.
14 JUNE 2023
Forex focus. Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins are joined by Coutts Head of Foreign Exchange, Ray Monaghan to discuss what it takes to be a forex trader, the toughest trading days and what’s currently moving currency markets.
6 JUNE 2023
Key inflation data, the bullish view on equities and the bearish view on commercial property.
30 may 2023
UK core inflation continues to rise, Nvidia and how generative AI is driving US equity returns, and the Dax reaction to news of the German recession.
23 may 2023
The case for equities in a higher interest rate environment, why investors are bullish Japanese stocks and key data we’re watching this week.
16 may 2023
Sarah Muir and Alan Higgins discuss recent US CPI, ongoing debt ceiling negotiations and the impact of geopolitical shocks on markets.
12 may 2023
Investment scams special with Jamie Bartlett, the man behind the BBC’s hit podcast series The Missing Crypto Queen. Jamie talks about the three psychological tricks scammers play on potential investors.
10 may 2023
Ben Allen sitting in for Sarah Muir this week. Ben and Alan consider ongoing US debt ceiling negotiations and the impact if an agreement can’t be reached. Plus expectations for the latest US CPI report and thoughts on the launch of Ireland’s very own sovereign wealth fund.
3 may 2023
As the Bank of Japan’s new governor Kazuo Ueda settles into his role, Sarah Muir, James Hawkes and Alan Higgins focus on the BoJ’s yield curve control policy, what to expect from Ueda and how policy changes may impact global markets.
25 april 2023
US earnings season take centre stage with a focus on how banks have done following Q1’s banking sector stress, the resilience of the US consumer and why markets are good at discounting negative news.
18 april 2023
US corporate earnings surprise to the upside, the latest Global Fund Managers’ survey from Bank of America and positive economic news from China.
12 april 2023
The latest US data and what it tells us about inflation, Bitcoin bounces back and how emotions impact investors’ returns.
03 april 2023
A look ahead to Good Friday’s US jobs report, UK GDP for 2022 gets revised up and a lone bullish voice in a forest of bears.
21 March 2023 - bonus
Sarah Muir and Irene Wolstenholme from Coutts Wealth Structuring look at the key takeaways from last week’s budget, including changes to pensions, corporation tax and fiscal drag.
21 February 2023
The importance of challenging orthodox economic thinking
From yield curves and bond yields as a recession predictor to why central banks fixate on 2% inflation. Plus, one year on from the invasion of Ukraine, the impact geopolitical events have on markets.
bonus episode
In this week’s bonus special episode Sarah Muir and Alex Liddle look at the war in Ukraine, how we got to where we are now, the prospects for a Spring offensive and how a resolution to the conflict might be established.
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